Japan
Bunka – Inside Tokyo’s Fashion Factory
Kenzo, Koshino, Nigo, Yamamoto – many an internationally renowned Japan designer was trained at Tokyo’s Bunka College of fashion. At the college, sustainability and ethics are considered as important as good design technique in educating students.
Social businesses hands on: Helping to rebuild Tsunami stricken Eastern Japan
The coastal areas of Eastern Japan, while largely unaffected by the grade 9 earthquake from March 11th, 2011, was thoroughly washed away by the tsunami following the quake. Now that the recovery efforts are under way, also fashion companies and fashion related projects contribute their share. An overview of what is happening on the ground to-date.
Ethical Fashion & Social Enterpreneurship: The Japanese case
At the forefront of the Japanese ethical fashion movement, and commercially the most successful, are social businesses. They’re principle strategy is to build a firm base in their own national market, but beyond that Asian markets are their principle expansion area. Design is flexible, but their business principle are everything but.
The samurai’s self-sustaining society
A fascinating book, full of examples, about how traditional Japanese society innovatively survived in a land of scarce resources, over-population and huge cities.
Living Textile Craftsmanship – A Story of Masters and Students
Bryan Whitehead is one of the few remaining textile craftsmen in Japan who not only rears his own silk, but masters the whole textile process. Just as he as learned from seasoned crafts people, he now hands his knowledge on to his students. A plea to best of craftsmen and women cherish their expertise by teaching.
Sashiko – an extinct textile tradition from the heart of Japan’s working class
Sashiko – a now extinct Japanese textile technique and tradition which for centuries was used to adorn as much as make garments more durable. A portrait.
Kimono as an Art – The World of Itchiku Kubota
Itchiku Kubota is possibly the Japanese Kimono artist par excellence. None of his contemporaries have created such a body of work. At the same time, the artist brings the value of craftsmanship, today often ignored or under-rated, to our attention.
The Japanese textile and fashion industry – between tradition and high-tech
Cotton as an attractive alternative in tsunami regions. Leading textile manufacturers promoting the cultivation of organic cotton. New technologies and methods for natural dyeing processes and recycling. And five categories of Green Fashion in Japan.
Creating a Used Clothing Recycling System in Japan
The amount of textile products thrown away, incinerated using fuel, or sent to the landfill in Japan comes to about 1.97 million tons per year. Contrary to other materials, for textile products, however, there is no nationwide recycling law in place.
Made to Last – The life of a yukata
This article has originally been published online by ‘Japan for Sustainability’ (JFS) on May 30, 2005. It is the 1st instalment of a 4 part chapter in the series ‘Sustainability in Japan’s Edo Period–300 Years Ago!‘. The series is an English translation of ‘Japan in the Edo Period – An Ecologically-Conscious Society’,(“O-edo ecology jijo,” published [...]
